Ally Wollaston opens 2026 with a dominant sprint win in first stage Tour Down Under

The opening stage of the Women’s Tour Down Under has been won by Ally Wollaston. The New Zealander from FDJ-SUEZ proved the fastest in a reduced bunch sprint, beating Britain’s Josie Nelson (Picnic PostNL) and Femke Gerritse (SD Worx–Protime), who finished second and third respectively. Wollaston also becomes the first rider to wear the ochre leader’s jersey.

We are back underway. The international women’s peloton has officially launched its season in Australia with the first stage of the Tour Down Under. The three-day stage race began with a relatively hilly route finishing in Willunga. However, there was no summit finish on the famous Willunga Hill, making it a clear opportunity for the faster riders to leave their mark on the race.

As a result, the opening stage was not immediately attractive for the attackers. It was Alessia Vigilia (Uno-X Mobility) who set off alone early on, but her advantage was closely controlled by teams such as SD Worx–Protime and Picnic PostNL. The Italian rider was allowed a maximum lead of 3 minutes and 30 seconds, but the sprint teams kept her firmly within reach. FDJ-SUEZ also contributed to the chase, with Amber Kraak in particular spending close to 70 kilometres on the front of the peloton.

Vigilia was duly rewarded with the mountains jersey, but her lead gradually began to shrink. On the rolling terrain along the way, no one attempted a serious attack: the remainder of the route was not difficult enough to stay ahead of the bunch, especially with long, straight and wide roads. In the finale, more and more teams moved to the front, including Lidl-Trek, AG Insurance – Soudal and Liv AlUla Jayco.

The stage had been fairly uneventful until the final three kilometres, when a heavy crash disrupted the calm. A Movistar rider looked over her shoulder and drifted slightly off her line, triggering a chain reaction. Five riders went down in total, including two from Liv AlUla Jayco and two from CANYON//SRAM zondacrypto.

Vigilia managed to hold on until the final kilometre, but that was where her brave effort came to an end. Her dream of staying away dissolved, and the stage victory would be decided in a sprint. SD Worx–Protime led out Femke Gerritse, but she was surprised by an early acceleration from Ally Wollaston. Wollaston launched a powerful sprint and claimed a convincing victory, ahead of Josie Nelson (Picnic PostNL) and Gerritse.